Robin's birthday
by The Crafted Enigma
Summary: It's Robin's birthday, but it's not a time to celebrate. When Robin cracks and breaks down, it's the team's job to find out what to do. This is my first fanfic and I hope you like it :)
1. chapter 1

ROBIN'S BIRTHDAY

It was that day. The day Robin hated the most. February twelfth. Robin's birthday and his parent's death-day. Every bad guy he ever faced knew not to mess with him today or he would beat them into oblivion. He was able to hide it from the Titans the year they met and the year after that but on that day each year he felt like he was deteriorating. Slowly dying inside of himself. But this year doesn't compare to the last two years at all! He felt as if he was already dead. He couldn't even get up from his bed. So much for training.

The Titans were worried. Raven had a hint of an idea why Robin acts the way he does on this day. But no one truly knew why. He's distant, he fights ...to kill, he barely eats, and he sulks around all day. But this year was different. Raven could sense that he was barely holding on to that last bit of strength that he had before he broke down and Beast Boy sensed deep despair, sadness, regret, and anger all coming from Robin's room. It was so strong. Beast Boy didn't know one person could carry that much negative emotion. Cyborg and Starfire had bad feelings about today too. Raven broke the silence and talked first.

"Guys he's barely holding on. He's gonna break down."

"I'm sensing some deep sadness and anger from his room, dudes. And his alarm's going off. Either Silky's hates being in his room and he's not there, or he's asleep." Beast Boy said.

"He wasn't up early like he usually is." Cyborg pointed out.

"And when I did the knocking on his door he did not answer. I believe he is experiencing the Snorklefloogle. It is contagious." Everyone looked at Starfire oddly.

"Well what do we do? If he doesn't eat he'll starve," Beast Boy said. But honestly, that was the least of their problems.

"I'll go get him. Maybe I can figure something out." Cyborg said. He walked to Robin's room and knocked on his door. He heard his alarm but no Robin. Cyborg decided to speak loudly so Robin could hear him over the alarm clock.

"Hey Robin! Um, breakfast is ready and you didn't come out of your room, what's up?"

No answer.

"Robin?"

Still nothing. Cyborg was starting to think that he was sleeping. Or in trouble.

"Robin are you okay? ...I'm coming in!"

Cyborg opened the door to see his leader curled up in bed. Robin picked up the alarm clock, threw it at the wall he was facing, (the wall opposite of Cyborg) took out a million bird-a-rangs, and threw them at the alarm clock. The clock exploded, froze, got covered in goop, exploded again, then melted to grey goop. Then exploded. Cyborg was stunned.

"...Wow. Robin? Are you gonna eat?"

Still no answer. Cyborg walked up to him and saw that he wasn't wearing his suit. Or his mask. His eyes were shut tight and he was in black sweats. His hair wasn't gelled either. Robin's hair not being gelled? Something was definitely wrong here. Cyborg's been in his room at night and morning before. Robin literally never takes of his mask. Or his suit. Cyborg reached and shook the small boy.

"Leave me alone, Cyborg."

The poor broken boy spoke in a hoarse, small voice. Cyborg jumped back; one third surprised that he wasn't sleep, one third surprised at what he said, and one third surprised at how he said it. He sounded so sad and helpless. Like he felt nothing but misery.

"Robin, you alright man?"

"Go away."

"Listen, Robin. We're all waiting for you out there. You have Star thinking you have the Tamaranian flu! You gotta get up, man."

Without saying another word, Robin slowly reached for his mask. A few minutes later, Cyborg came into the living room, his face grim. Starfire expressed the worry that all of them were feeling.

"Is he okay? Was he purple?!"

Just then, Robin came in. At first glance he would have looked exhausted. But if you looked closer you would have seen the way his mask turned up in the middle. He was hunched over with his head down and he still wasn't wearing his suit. His hair still wasn't spiked and fell into his eyes. He didn't react to the others' presence, sat on the couch, and folded his arms with his head still down. Starfire moved closer to him.

"Robin?" She asked. Beast Boy came up next to her.

"Are you hungry dude?"

Robin turned his head away from the team and sunk further into the couch. Raven turned to Cyborg with a look that clearly said 'explain.'

"It took a lot just to get him to put his mask on-" He was interrupted by Beast Boy.

"He had his mask off?"

"Yeah. He wouldn't open his eyes- had 'em shut tight- but his mask was off. He wouldn't put on the suit. Had those on all morning. No matter what I said he wouldn't change."

It was silent for a few moments before Beast Boy spoke.

"Hueston we got a problem."

 _Don't worry guys! I'll update the next chapter when I get the chance. But don't rush, review! I mean you don't have to. You'll just wither away from the guilt that you didn't bring up a poor first time fanfiction writer's confidence. But no worries_

:)


	2. two

"Tell me exactly what happened." Raven said. She, Starfire, and Cyborg were in the kitchen and Beast Boy was trying to convince Robin to eat.

"I knocked on his door and heard his alarm but he didn't didn't answer so I said Hey Robin! Breakfast is ready and you won't come out of your room, what's up? When he didn't say anything, I told him I was coming in and burst through the door. I went up to him and shook him and he said to leave him alone and he sounded horrible so I asked him if he was alright. He told me to go away so I told him that he was scaring the crap out of Starfire. He grabbed his mask but he didn't put on the suit." Cyborg explained.

"Not wearing the required Tamaranian outfit calls for the trader to battle the great Glifnok." Starfire said.

"Come on! Please please please? You gotta eat something! Um, tofu pancakes? Tofu waffles? Tofu eggs? Tofu bacon? Tofu-" Beast Boy was cut off by Cyborg.

"Man, nobody wants your nasty Tofu!!"

"Well he didn't say no, did he?!"

"I'm not hungry." Robin mumbled.

"Robin you have to-"

"I said I don't want to eat!" Robin cut off Starfire.

"Chill, man. It was just a question." Cyborg pointed out.

"Anyone needs me, I'll be in my room."

Robin got up and walked towards the door but Starfire stopped him.

"Robin? Are you not going to tell us what is the matter?"

"I... I can't."

And with that, he left. The Titans shared a glance and knew that today, as of right now, Robin was gone and whoever was behind that mask broke through finally. They couldn't see him physically, but they could see him emotionally and mentally.

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Why did he have to live? Why did the people that he love only die? Why was he alive? Why did he have to be Robin? He knew the answers to all of those questions but it didn't matter to him. Suddenly, the alarm went off and he ran to the main room. The Titans were already there, waiting for him. Cyborg was finding out the info.

"It's Doctor Light. He's trying to rob the bank."

"For someone named Docter Light, he isn't bright at all." The team turned at his voice.

"Robin! You came out of your room!" Starfire exclaimed.

"Dude, maybe you should stay here."BeastBoy suggested. He was shifting foot to foot.

Robin looked like a toddler who was just told 'no'. In shock but clearly angry. And getting angrier.

"Why should I do that?" He said

Beast Boy almost jumped back again but he had to stand his ground. But before he said anything, Starfire spoke.

"Robin, we think that on this day every year, you beat the bad guys... in a harsh manner." Raven picked up where Starfire left off.

"And although that's technically what we're supposed to do-" Raven was cut off by Beast Boy. He was feeling unusually impatient.

"Ugh can we just get to the point! You can't fight because today you have, like, anger issues or something!"

"Well, at least more than usual." Cyborg said.

Robin was angry. They're HIS team! And they're treating him like Batman did every year when he worked for him. If only they knew. If only they knew the truth. Oh, how badly he wanted to just stop being Robin, burst into the tears he's been holding all morning, rip off his mask, and tell them every, single, painful detail. But he couldn't. It would be giving away his secret identity, it would be exposing himself to any bad guy who might be there at the wrong time, or in their case, the right time, and it would be endangering Batman's secret identity. It was too much at risk.

"No. I'm going." He stated simply.

"You don't need to go, man. It's just Light." Cyborg pointed out.

"Yeah, Light! I don't want you to do it on your own." Robin said, getting frustrated. Beast Boy got angry.

"So you _do_ think we can't do it!"

Now, Robin was furious. Beast Boy just wrongly accused him and he didn't say anything offensive. Robin tried his best to calm down with no avail.

"Did I say that?" He asked through gritted teeth.

"No." Beast Boy said, crossing his arms.

"Then that's not what I mean. Let's go." Robin whipped around, his cape flapping behind him, and walked away.

 _Chapter two is done! Was that good enough to get a review? I think it was... hint hint._


	3. prt three

_Sorry for the wait guys. Thank you so much for the great reviews though, you guys are awesome!_ TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Doctor Light, completely forgetting what day it was, was about to walk away when...

"Boy did you pick the wrong day for this, Doctor Light!"

Remembering what the day was a second too late, Doctor Light slowly turned around, clearly terrified of the young teen.

"Um... I'd like to go to jail now, please."

"Too late for that, Light!"

Robin whipped out his bo staff and started beating the criminal. It took the Titans a second to gather themselves but Cyborg grabbed Robin, Beast Boy took his stick, Raven put Light in a truck, and Starfire was trying to calm Robin.

"Do you now understand what we mean, friend Robin?"

"I had him!"

"Yeah you 'had him' alright."

Robin turned to glare at Beast Boy when Raven came back.

"I think it's best for all of us to go back home. The cops have Light from here."

"Yeah."

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"Dude! What's your problem??!! You-you won't tell us anything, you get angry when we don't understand you, and then, you go beating the living space snot outta that guy!! What is your to~fu??!!"

Robin said nothing and kept his eyes out of the window. Starfire sat in front of his view.

"Friend Robin, I am worried for your wellbeing. Will you do the confiding in us?"

"Leave me alone,"

Robin spoke in a half pleading half broken tone. He got up and started to walk away but Cyborg blocked him.

"Man you have to tell us! We're your friends, we're going to find out soon enough."

Robin was shaking now. He tried to stay strong. He couldn't break down in front of them.

"I s-said, l-leave me alone."

Robin sincerely hoped that they would get the hint. Then Raven stepped up. Oh, not Raven too! He couldn't take it much longer.

"Robin you can't keep doing this to yourself. You know our pasts but we don't know anything about you. How are we supposed to help you?"

He was gonna break,

"I don't need your help-"

"There you go again! You don't need help with this, you don't need help with that, WHY, DON'T, YOU, TRUST US!!"

And that's when he broke. An angry and sad sob broke through his lips and tears came rushing on his mask, wetting it and seeping through like a river. The Titans immediately seized, but they all knew it was way too late to let him go. There was no turning back. Before he could stop himself, Robin spoke -well, yelled- in a harsh, icy, tone.

"DON'T YOU _EVER_ SAY THAT!! I TRUST YOU WITH MY _LIFE_!!! I WOULD DIE FOR YOU, BUT YOU WANT TO KNOW MY PERSONAL BUSINESS _SOOO_ BAD RIGHT??!!! I NEVER BUTTED INTO YOUR BUSINESS!!! I NEVER BEGGED YOU TO TELL ME SOMETHING THAT YOU DIDN'T WANT TO SAY!! I THOUGHT YOU UNDERSTOOD THAT!!! I THOUGHT YOU UNDERSTOOD THAT RAVEN!!! BUT YOU WANT TO KNOW MY SECRET??!!! HUH??!! WELL HERE IT IS!!!!"

Robin could barely yell at them anymore. They were too stunned to stop him so he kept on, trying to yell; express his anger, sadness and betrayal.

"MY PARENTS, They, th-they died! I watched them fall to their deaths! I HEARD their screams! I heard them. A-and I was helpless. Completely and utterly helpless!! Today is my BIRTHDAY!! And, i-it's the s-saddest day o-of m-my ent-ire life! I, AM, AN, ORPHAN!!!! MARY LOYD AND JOHN GRAYSON! you wanna know so badly? Look it up."

With the tears streaming down his face and one more uncontrolled cry, Robin pushed passed Cyborg and ran. No one knew what to say. Starfire started to go after him but Raven stopped her. Both girls had tears in their eyes, Cyborg looked like he was gonna cry; or get a fly in his mouth. He was stunned. And Beast Boy felt awful. His ears drooped considerably low.

"We are the absolute worst of friends."

"W-we betrayed his trust. He feels like we betrayed him."

"I can't believe he broke down like that. He never broke down."

"We pushed him too far."

"His feelings are in the turmoil, correct?"

"This is all my fault. He went crazy because of me!"

"He didn't go crazy Beast Boy."

"Then what do you call that?!"

"A complete, total mental and physical break down. We have to fix this or we could loose Robin forever."


	4. prt four

_Here's part four. If it's a little too dramatic just let me know. Thanks again for reviewing_

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Robin lay in his bed, unable to stop crying. He took off his mask so it wouldnt get it wet. He stared at the wall, face just about blank except the frown on it. He stared at the wall in a complete haze. In a total daydream. Well, more like a day-mare. The scene wouldn't leave him alone. The last word she said was his name. He heard him scream. He heard the crack as they hit the floor. He felt their blood on his unusually pale skin; even for him. He tasted it in his mouth. The liquid copper. He smelled their blood. It made him weak. The blood mixed with his mom's almond and chocolate smell and his dad's signature Cologne. He saw the bones that stood out of their skin. He saw their faces. Their haunted, haunting, once familiar screaming faces. He couldn't come back. He couldn't escape this nightmare. He half-saw the wall. He didn't see Starfire come in.

"Robin? We are deeply sorry for causing the breaking of downness. Can you forgive us?" Robin didn't hear her. He heard their screams, their bones. He heard his name.

"Robin?" Starfire walked into the room more and saw that Robin was shaking. He still didn't react to her being there.

"Robin? Are you the O of Ks?" Still no answer. Just shaking and shuttered breaths. Now, Starfire was worried. She walked to where she was in front of him and gasped. He was still crying. He was shaking and rocking slightly and his eyes were glazed over. His eyes! They were so pretty! So many blues in two irises! Starfire called him again and got no reaction. She lowered herself to where she was eye level with the boy and did a trick that the one, the only, Beast Boy taught her. She waved her hand in front of him but his eyes stayed straight. He shook more violently and Starfire got scared.

"Friends come quickly! There is something the matter with Robin!" In an millisecond (thanks to Raven) they were there.

"He is without his mask and his eyes will not follow mine! He seems to be asleep with the opening of the eyes!" Beast Boy went over to him and checked him.

"Star's right, he's out of it!" Raven took a try with snapping his fingers. As she snapped she spoke to him.

"Robin. Robin you in there? Wake up!" Nothing. Cyborg went over to him, grabbed him by the shoulders, and started shaking him like crazy. His eyes moved and met Cyborg's and he blinked a few times. When Cyborg came into a clearer view, Robin sat up and held his head.

"You okay dude? You were like... out of it." Remembering what transpired a little while ago, Robin's eyes filled with anger and sadness. The Titans were astonished that his eyes were so beautiful, he wasn't wearing his mask, and he didn't know he wasn't wearing his mask. He looked so hurt! They didn't know this was what laid underneath his mask. He looked so young. Their thoughts were interrupted by Robin's hesitant broken voice.

"I'm fine." He turned away from them. Starfire screeched, grabbed his head and turned him towards her.

"Please! You cannot turn your most beautiful of the irises away from us!" It took a while first Robin to hear what she said. His mind was a little slow. He should have gotten sleep last night. It took him even longer to calculate it.

"Beautiful? Eyes? Oh no!" Robin covered his eyes and reached for his mask. Raven handed it to him and he quickly put it on. Starfire shrunk in defeat.

"What happened?" He asked.

"What Beast Boy said. You were out of it man." Cyborg responded. Robin sighed and looked down.

"Will you be experiencing the O of Ks Robin?" Starfire asked.

"I'll be fine. As soon as today is over I'll be fine."

"Dude you have to stop with this riddle stuff! What are you talking about?" Beast Boy exclaimed. Robin sighed with a defeated look on his face. He took off his mask again and stared at each and every one of his friends.

"Guess I should start from the beginning... Hi everyone. My Name is Richard Grayson. But you can call me, Dick."

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	5. prt five

_Again, I am sooo sorry for making you guys wait so long. I got locked out of my account, then I had to make a new one, then I decided to try it one more time, then it then I had to make a new one because I saw that I didn't have anymore ideas for a new chapter again so sorry. Thank you for your time I will try my best to make this a satisfying chapter._

"Wait a second. You're Dick Grayson? _The_ Dick Grayson? Ward of the millionaire Bruce Wayne?!" Beast Boy exclaimed.

"No wonder you can always pay for things!"

"Wouldn't that make Bruce Wayne Batman?" Cyborg questioned.

"No, Batman's a jerk." Robin replied, not exactly knowing why he was protecting _his_ identity.

"Anyway, I was born in LA. My parents were a part of a small circus called Hailey's Circus."

"You were the flying Graysons! They were the best trapeze artists ever! Only they were able to-"

"Flip five times in in mid air. We traveled all over but, it, happened in Gotham. We were getting ready for our big night. I was five years old and I would be introduced as their grand act. being the youngest kid in the circus. It would also be my last night in Gotham City. That evening, before the show, this man, he said his name was Tony Zucco, he asked for money for them to 'protect' our circus. When my dad refused, he threatened him. With me. He had two other guys with him. One really big and loaded with muscles, the other about the same height as I was. Maybe even shorter. They attacked my dad but I had secretly called the police as soon as they started talking. Batman appeared out of nowhere and stopped them; scared them off. Later, I was running toward the big tent and I saw the little man walk by me. He gave me a weird, evil smile. I was trying to tell my parents but we were being called out to do our part. Everything went as normal until my mom went to grab me as the finishing part. The screw holding the trapeze together shot out and they- they fell. And I was right there and I was useless and- I saw it happen. Right before my eyes. Police, ambulance, paramedics, but, it was too late. Everyone knew it was too late. People tried to comfort me but I didn't know what they said. I don't remember much after that except all the orphanages were full. Gotham is full of crime and evil people that don't want their kids. So I was put in juvie. For almost a year."

"Please, what is this, juvie?" Starfire asked.

"It's a jail for children Star."

"But Robin has not anything wrong,"

"It's where they decided to put me. Bruce Wayne adopted me. I was angry. No one was even trying to solve my case. No one believed me when I said it was Tony Zucco, the dude those cops let out of jail that killed them. I went out to find him myself and I did. I just had very little fighting skills. He tried to get rid of me but I used my abilities. Evaded most of the punches and kicks. I almost got shot but Batman found us and beat him up. He went back to jail but I was too stubborn to 'just go home'. Wayne manor wasn't my home. Where my parents were was my home. Batman saw my potential and took me in. Bruce Wayne didn't want all the ladies to think that he lost his ward so he said that he sent me to a boarding school that was on another island. I got shot once, Batman flipped out, and fired me. We got into a fight, I left, and moved here, to jump, where I met you guys. And that's my story." He lifted his head and looked at the Teen Titans. His team. His friends. His family. Starfire was crying quietly, Raven's eyes watered but her face was emotionless; she had to keep them in check, Cyborg looked torn. His face was grim. And Beast Boy looked torn, and knowing. Like he experienced it before.

"Wow man. I never knew you're life was so tough." Cyborg finally said.

"Robin," Starfire gave him a bone crushing hug. Literally. After being able to breath again, he smiled. He actually felt better.

"Thanks guys. I guess I needed to talk about it." He said. His friends smiled back at him and Robin knew that no matter what happened, everything would be alright.


End file.
